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A free fashion show is coming to Ottertail. On Saturday, June 16 at 6 p.m., the Red Brick Boutique will be showcasing the work of local designers in a runway show at the courtyard of the Creamery. Battle Lake native Alex Floersch will be showing a few pieces that she's been working on in school, and two young costume designers from Matti's Millinery in Fergus Falls will exhibit a collection of period pieces - dresses and other styles from the renaissance up through the 1950s. Paula Thiel of the Red Brick Boutique said this is the first year of the fashion show, but she hopes it'll catch on.

A Perham businessman is about to compete in what industry insiders call, "the Super Bowl of livestock auctioneering." Mitchell Barthel, owner of Perham Stockyards, Inc., is one of 33 semi-finalists who will be dueling is out at the 2012 World Livestock Auctioneer Championship in Turlock, Calif., this week. This is Barthel's third time in the semi-finals. He competed in 2010, and was 13th in the world in 2009. He guaranteed himself a spot again this year after winning the quarterfinals in Dickinson, N.D., on Oct.

Construction has begun on the Perham McDonald's. At a groundbreaking ceremony last week, the owners said the new fast food restaurant should be open by mid-August. The building, which is pre-assembled into large pieces and then shipped to its permanent location, takes only four days to put up once it's arrived.

'Evil' conquered 'good' at the 20th annual Great American Think-Off on Saturday. The contest asked four finalists to debate human nature as either inherently evil or inherently good, and New York man Adam Bright, arguing on the side of 'evil,' took home the top prize. This was the second time in Think-Off history that this question was asked; the first time, in its inaugural year, the contest resulted in a draw. Bright won after hammering home the heart of his argument: that "humankind is evil by way of complicity." Though most of us think of ourselves as good people, he said, and we try

If you want to learn a little something about a town's history, just look up. That's the advice of Otter Tail County Historical Society Executive Director Chris Schuelke, who points out that construction dates and other information are often carved in stone near the tops of old buildings, still visible even a century or more later, giving people vital clues about a place's origins. In Perham, for example, the date of 1896 is still displayed at the top of the building that is now Sugar & Spice, on the corner of Main St. and 1st Ave.

Under a sunny sky and on calm waters Saturday, the Angler-Young Angler Fishing Tournament in Perham was held on what organizers said was "probably one of the best days we've ever had," weather-wise. A total of 34 boats entered into this year's competition, carrying at least one child for every adult. The event is designed to get youth interested in fishing, and no one goes home without a prize. The challenge for each team was fairly simple - to catch up to five walleye.

If there's anything louder than the roar of 1,000 motorcycles revving up, it's the deafening silence left behind when a sick child is taken to the hospital. This weekend, as the annual Ronald McDonald House Ride takes another spin in New York Mills, even the noise of the crowds, the rock bands and the thousand-plus engines won't be enough to drown out the event's ultimate purpose - helping families of ill children make it through some really tough times. The ride, now in its 11th year, has raised nearly three-quarters of a million dollars for the Ronald McDonald House.

The Perham Center for the Arts is about to be the center of a new Art in the Park event during Turtle Fest. Taking place over the weekend of June 22-24, Art in the Park will feature local artisans displaying and selling their work from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Food and live entertainment will also be on site as part of the Lions Club's 40-year anniversary celebrations.

The 11th annual Ronald McDonald House Ride is right around the corner, and New York Mills will soon play host to more than a thousand motorcyclists riding for a cause. The NY Mills ride is the largest of its kind in the nation. Since first 'hitting the street' just over a decade ago, the event has grown tremendously - raising more than $100,000 every year for the last three years, as well as collecting millions of pop tabs for the Ronald McDonald House Pop Tab program.